


A Broken Hallelujah

by geez



Category: From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, OK I KNOW WHAT THE WARNING IS BUT JUST TRUST ME, all the angst to be honest, but then it's happy, like hella angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-31
Updated: 2016-08-31
Packaged: 2018-08-12 03:45:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7919281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/geez/pseuds/geez
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“It <em>hurts</em>, Seth.” Her voice is weak, as if getting lost on the wind. Seth moves closer to her so that they share the same breath. His calloused, bloody hands brush the hair from her face. </p>
<p>“I know, princess, I know.” He murmurs. They both fall silent, listening to the shuffling of their family around them. He knows he’s being selfish with her attention but, frankly, he couldn’t give less of a shit. <em>They had their chance.</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	A Broken Hallelujah

He skids on the dirt to get her, his hands frozen between applying pressure to the wound and holding her hand. His hysterical mind decides on the wound. “Kate! Hey, hey, stay with me, sweetheart, okay? Stay with me. You’re gonna be okay, I promise. ‘No bumps or scrapes’, yeah? You just gotta hold on, Kate, just a little bit longer.” Seth doesn’t know what he’s telling her to hold on _for_ exactly because everyone that could help her is here and they all know there’s nothing any of them can really do. She doesn’t want to be turned. 

Never in his life has that been a more heartbreaking sentence. Seth doesn’t care if she drinks the blood of puppies and kindergarten teachers, he just wants her here. More than anything. 

Kate just takes a shuddering breath and reaches for his hand, pulling it away from her bloody stomach. Seth tries not to dwell on how weak her grip is. It’s better to live in denial. “I- I’m so sorry that I hurt you.” 

“That wasn’t you, baby, it’s fine. I’m fine. You just focus on keeping those pretty eyes open. Can you do that?” 

He knows she can’t. He sees how her eyes flutter closed every time she pauses to take a breath. Seth inhales sharply, trying to keep his shit together because Kate does _not_ need him to be an emotional wreck. 

“It _hurts_ , Seth.” Her voice is weak, as if getting lost on the wind. Seth moves closer to her so that they share the same breath. His calloused, bloody hands brush the hair from her face. 

“I know, princess, I know.” He murmurs. They both fall silent, listening to the shuffling of their family around them. He knows he’s being selfish with her attention but, frankly, he couldn’t give less of a shit. _They had their chance._

Seth almost loses his mind when her pretty green eyes fill with tears. Even when they were fighting a hoard of culebras in a labyrinth, Kate never looked so terrified and hopeless. He starts shaking his head before she even speaks, “I don’t think I can-” 

“You _have to_. I can’t lose you again, Kate. Once was enough.” He’s already running through their options; Richie could always turn her, it’s not like he’s the most respectful person in the world and he’s fairly certain he could convince his brother to do it. Then there’s the lords, no one knows the full extent of their power but Seth is convinced that bringing someone back to life is within their purview. Whatever he tries, they end up under someone’s thumb. However much he and Richie have been through, there’s no guarantee that he wouldn’t use that favor against him- Seth knows that what he would do. And the lords...god, there’s no telling what they would make him do in exchange for Kate’s life. _Too much than what she would want me to do._

Large parts of him still think it would be worth every cent, every lash, every horror that anyone could plan for him- if it meant Kate Fuller could walk the earth, happy and pain free.   
Seth is certain there isn’t much he wouldn’t do for this girl. He’d already ventured into the pits of hell for her soul, what else could happen? 

“We don’t always get what we want.” Her voice cuts through his frantic thoughts. While Seth was busy going through their options, Kate apparently found some semblance of peace. Her eyes are still glossy from tears but a calm has settled over her. She doesn’t want to die but she’s accepted the inevitable. 

Fuck that. “Yeah, well, I call bullshit on that one. I did not travel to the depths of hell just so I could watch you die.” 

“Maybe it’s God giving us a chance.” He has a sudden flashback to the girl he kidnapped all that time ago. She’s never seemed so small. 

“No! Come on, Kate, that’s absolute fuckin’ crap. I’m not saying goodbye to you because you’re not going to fucking die.” 

“Seth.” She says his name harshly, leaving no argument. “It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” The hand that clasps his is colder than he’s used to. It’s all wrong. This entire fuckin’ situation is wrong. His whole goddamn life is wrong but that isn’t exactly the point. 

“No it isn’t. I don’t believe that.” How can she say that everything will be okay? Nothing will be okay ever again. He knows, he’s already lived in a world without Kate Fuller. It didn’t agree with him. 

The stubborn look that crosses her face is so familiar it brings a small smile to his face. She’s so beautiful, especially when she’s angry. “Tough shit. I do. You can’t control everything, Seth.” Another shuddering breath, they’re coming slower now. “Sometimes you just have to take what’s given to you.” 

“Kate.” His hand cups her cheek. Her eyes slowly shut, as if she can no longer fight overdue sleep. “Come on, please, you just gotta-” She’s no longer responsive. Seth looks down at her chest, there’s no movement. _No_. “Kate? Kate?! Come on, sweetheart, open your eyes. Kate!” 

~ 

He doesn’t know what’s worse, her dying and him not being there or her dying and him having to watch every agonizing second. 

The dried blood on his hands is hers. The complete and utter absence of his heart is her doing. 

He got her. He fucking saved her. Only to watch her bleed out on the ground, his futile hands digging into the wound as a desperate way to stem the flow. 

What kind of life has he lived that that makes sense? The only partner he ever chose dies once, only to get possessed by a skank she-devil, just so he can fight his way through hell to save her soul, all so he can watch as something beautiful and pure bleeds out on the dusty ground of an abandoned coal mining town in the middle of bumfuck no where. 

Yeah. Sounds about par for the course. 

He can still feel her hand on his cheek. The sound of her laboured breathing still rings in his ears. 

It isn’t like before, when Richie told him she was gone and the change in the universe was immediate and damning. No, no, this time it’s almost like it’s less real because he was there. He was speaking to her moments before she was gone. She was there and gone in the time it took him to blink. 

Seth sees bits of her in the way the sun streams through the window, in the way the wind rattles sand passing him. He hears her laugh in the breeze. 

And it’s the most fucked up thing ever because he _knows_ she’s gone, okay? He carried her dead body himself. There’s no chance for spontaneous possession by bitchy demoness here. Kate Fuller no longer walks this earth and she never will again. 

But, fuck if it doesn’t just seem like she’s on some kind of lifetime sabbatical, catching rays on a beach that he can’t get to, wearing a smile he can’t see. 

Maybe it’s a coping mechanism or some shit. Seth doesn’t know. Can’t really think, to be perfectly honest. It feels like every thought that runs through his head is a skittish bird that lands on a branch only to decide that, for whatever reason, it’d like to rest elsewhere. Each piece of information, every scrap of dialogue, escapes him in a flurry of wings; they can’t wait to get away. 

He can’t blame them. 

“Brother...” Seth just shakes his head and pushes past Richie’s hands, heading straight for Ximena and the Ranger. 

He takes the culebra’s neck in one hand and pushes her against the wall. Immediately, Gonzalez has a knife to his throat. “Watch yourself, Gecko.” The other man threatens. For a second, Seth doesn’t give a shit whether he lives or dies. 

“Take me to your boss, chica. _Pronto_.” 

“It’s not that simple, pene.” Ximene seethes. “You can’t just demand an appointment with a lord.” 

“Tough shit. I am.” He says. “We’ve got some terms to discuss.” With that he lets her fall against the wall and stalks off. 

Or well, he tries to. 

_Fuckin’ Richie._

“Seth, come on, man. You need to calm down.” He says. Never has his little brother’s condescending voice ever been more insulting. “You’re not thinking straight.” 

“Oh, no fucking way! _I’m_ not thinking straight? Goddamn, I wonder why that may be.” 

“Look, brother, I know you’re hurting. We all are but you can’t...Seth, you _can’t_.” 

“I’ll do whatever I damn well please, Richard. Thank you very much.” He jerks away from his brother’s hands and turns back towards Ximena. “Get me that meeting, understood?” 

“Pudrete.” 

“I’m gonna take that as a yes.” 

~ 

Time passes. The sun rises and sets. Finally, Venganza blesses him with her presence. Her visage is both hazy and sharp thanks to the copious amounts of whiskey he’s been indulging in. 

“Mr. Gecko.” 

“Venganza.” 

There is a long silence before the woman continues. “You called me here, young man. Talk.” 

Seth stares down into his glass, swirling the liquid around before he looks Venganza in the eyes. “You promised me El Rey.” 

“ _If_ you got the job down, Gecko. Lords don’t let just anybody into El Rey.” 

“Look, lady, the world isn’t ending and no one is trying to kick you off your throne. The job is done. Now I wanna get paid.” 

She gives him a hard, discerning look that reminds him of the fact that this is a centuries old culebra he’s demanding things of. If Seth were in his right mind he would tread with caution. “Losing a lover is never easy, Mr. Gecko, but rest assured, you will have more.” 

“That isn’t- that’s not the point.” He says angrily, not willing to discuss his emotional state with this bitch. “I’m tired, okay? I can’t live this life anymore. I want to be at peace.” 

He can’t meet her inexplicably sad eyes. 

There is another beat of silence before she says, “I can do that.” 

“Good.” 

“But you have to be sure.” 

“Jesus Christ, I am!” He yells, throwing the glass at the wall- shattering it completely. “Just hold up your side of the bargain.” 

She comes at him with hands raised, finally resting them on his temples. “I hope you find her, Seth.” Venganza whispers. 

The last thing Seth hears before he loses consciousness is Richie screaming his name. 

~ 

You know that feeling of complete annoyance when sunbeams stream through the skin of your eyelids and disturb your sleep? Seth is getting up close and personal with that sensation right now. 

Bright sunbeams are cutting through his closed eyes, making violet circles spot across his vision. “Goddamn.” He finally hisses, sitting up suddenly, then- “What the fuck?” 

He’s on a beach. An honest to god beach. The sand is white and soft as a cloud, warm but not hot. The ocean is the clearest, most vibrant shade of blue he’s ever seen. He feels contentment fall over him as the sounds of the waves reach his ears. Seth has never seen such a beautiful place. 

It worked. 

Now, if only- “Seth?” 

The man spins around violent and there she is. Kate fuckin’ Fuller, standing upright. His eyes roam over her, making sure there isn’t a hair out of place. There’s no blemish on her healthy skin, she looks completely fine. She looks alive. 

He doesn’t know he’s moving but the next thing Seth knows, he’s got an armful of Kate Fuller. The intense knot inside of his chest eases as he breathes her in. “You’re here.” 

“Yeah...” She says, obviously confused. “Seth, what did you do?” 

“What I had to do, princess, don’t worry about it.” 

“No, Seth, you can’t just be here.” Kate reprimands, pulling out his arms despite his best efforts. 

“Kate.” He says, taking a large step forward and cupping her beautiful face in his palms. “I know what I did, okay? Let’s just enjoy it.” 

She looks into his eyes, unblinking, before shaking her head furiously. “No! There’s got to be a way to get you back.” 

“Goddammit, just-” Seth gives up on trying to convince her and surges forward, taking her lips in his, hoping like hell she doesn’t punch him in the face. Kate struggles under him for a second before she finally sighs into his kiss, opening up for him. 

It’s like every fantasy and dream he’s had for these past long months. He takes a step closer to her, pulling her into him with a hand at the palm of her back, smiling to himself when her small nails slide against the nape of his neck. She’s perfect. 

When they pull away, Kate just looks up at him with mischievous eyes. “Seth.” 

“Princess.” He says warmly, raising an eyebrow, daring her to say more. 

“Want some company?” She asks, nodding her head at the scenery around them. 

Seth just laughs and pulls her closer. “Yeah.” He whispers against her lips before stealing another kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry but at the same time I'm totally not.
> 
> This ship will be the death of me.


End file.
